


We Will Go Down With This Ship

by ariannadi



Series: Arian Lavellan [7]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Character Study, F/M, Friendship, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, Other, Romance, Scheming
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-15
Updated: 2015-06-24
Packaged: 2018-03-30 17:15:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,286
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3945040
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ariannadi/pseuds/ariannadi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Cullen and Arian have their first real fight - and it's only natural that some nosy friends attempt to intervene.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Here's the Situation

Perhaps this wasn't the best means of going about the problem. But it was most convenient.

And that's why the three eavesdroppers stood with their differing ears to the door of Cullen's office, listening to the heated bickering between the couple within. It had been almost half an hour since the two had retreated inside to discuss their issues, and by then nearly all of Skyhold could hear their shouting as it rang through the brick of the battlements. Dorian, being alert as ever, just so happened to be on his way to see the Commander for their weekly game of chess when the arguing had stopped him, and after that it had been no trouble quickly retrieving both Bull and Sera - who along with himself were considered to be closest to the Inquisitor and therefore in the need of knowing what was going on.

"What are they even arguing about?" Sera whispered harshly, her pointed ear pressing completely against the wood of the blockade. "For frick's sake, if he's not yelling, she is, and if he's shouting, she's not!"

"Shh!" Dorian hissed, causing the girl to spit at him. "Do you want them to know they can't even have a proper fight without us finding out?"

"Not like it was a secret or anything," Bull scoffed. "You could hear them clear from the tavern."

From beyond the confines of the door, the mage could make out just hints of what the conversation consisted of, though they were choppy and muffled.

_"You really think I don't... What is it... Arian just! ...Stop treating... Cullen... Just forget it! No, I don't want to..."_

And then with a start, Dorian heard the trampling of footsteps approach where he and the other two stood, and quickly he was yanking them away by their wrists, which was easier said than done what with Bull being a fortress in himself and Sera lankly flying along. Before Arian had even managed to throw the door open, they were across the bridge and back in the main hall of the castle, where Solas sat eying them curiously from his desk as they caught their breaths.

"I don't even want to know," he murmured and returned his attention to the book sitting before him.

"This is obviously worse than we thought, Pavus," Sera grunted conspicuously, ruffling her hair.

Dorian sighed. He wasn't good whatsoever at affairs of the heart, but both the Commander and Inquisitor had a hold on him personally, and he didn't wish anything to befall the budding relationship they were trying to manage in-between all the chaos. It _was_ within the confines of friendship to make sure they were both happy, right?

"I think we should speak with them, after all we probably know them better than most around here. Perhaps we can levy the situation," the altus suggested.

"And how do you say we do that? 'Is obvious they don't even wanna speak to each other right now," Sera rebutted.

"I could go talk to Cullen, see exactly what's going on to begin with," Bull said, shrugging slightly. Dorian nodded at the offer and then turned to Sera.

"You could go speak with Arian, you two have a better connection seeing as-"

Sera looked absolutely wild in the split second after she interrupted. "What? 'Cause we're both frickin' _elves_?"

"I was going to say," Dorian muttered after a short pause, "because you are both _women_."

The girl sputtered, her hand slapping her knee as she keeled over with laughter.

"Puh-lease!" she snapped up, "as if _I_ know anything about men!"

"Just do it, you ragamuffin," Dorian replied in exasperation, giving the elf a serious glare. "Bull will speak to Cullen, you will speak to Arian," he then concluded.

"And what will you do?" Bull asked after a moment.

"I," the mage said flippantly, "will await the information you two have retrieved, and then go from there. With any luck, we will resolve this before it gets too out of hand."

From where he still sat, seemingly forgotten amidst their conversation, Solas scoffed, "Best wishes with that."

 

 

 


	2. Sera

"You wanted to see me, Sera?" Arian asked when she entered the other elf's cluttered room within the tavern.

"Uh, yea!" Sera replied, whipping around to face her guest. "But, not here, right? On the roof, as usual. C'mon." With a careful step she hurdled out the window and onto the paneling of the adjacent building, Arian following suit but a second later. When they were both seated, Sera pulled out a basket of treats, offering it to the Inquisitor who smiled as she took out a cookie. Sera then grabbed three for herself, setting them on her lap.

"So, Sera, you usually don't bake goods unless something's troubling you," Arian stated, nibbling a bit at her sweet.

The younger elf bit at her lip, then sighed dramatically.

"I'm gonna kill that Tevinter bastard for making me do this," she grumbled under her breath.

"What was that?"

"Nothing!" Sera bellowed, quickly stuffing a cookie into her mouth messily. "Just uh..." she started again once she had swallowed, crumbs now framing her lips, "You and General Uptight, you two been gettin' lot of attention lately."

Arian's brow quirked. "Have we?" she implored.

"Yeah, everyone talks about you. You guys make a cute couple, that's what I heard one lot say one time. Others are jealous, either of you or him. Say he don't deserve you, say you too important for him. All rubbish in my opinion. I like what you do to him. You make him people. You make him not so scowly-faced n' stuff," Sera explained.

The Inquisitor laughed at that. "Well, we do tend to even each other out pretty well, even if not everyone agrees with it."

"That why you two were fightin' earlier?" Sera blurted without thought. _Shit,_ she then berated herself silently.

Arian went quiet as she took another bite out of her treat. Looking upward towards Cullen's tower, she sighed.

"That was...he really did mean well, I shouldn't have reacted the way I did."

Intrigued, Sera prodded, "whaddya mean?"

"I know he's worried about me on a daily basis. But he seems to forget that I was taking care of myself before I became a part of the Inquisition. I know how to handle things. I don't need someone hovering over me and telling me I need to be more careful, it just makes me seem..."

"Weak? Scared? Incapable?" Sera butted in hurriedly.

The Inquisitor glowered at the girl with a chiding frown. "Yes, thank you, Sera."

Rolling her eyes, Sera only said, "You know if someone cared for me that much, I wouldn't have to shoot arrows into everything that moves; have my whole life taken care of in n' instant."

"It's not that I don't appreciate his concern," Arian clarified, "It's just better for me to know that I can handle things without any intervention."

Blowing a raspberry, Sera responded, "So you were just fighting about your safety? Man, it's a good thing I don't get involved in lovey-dovey stuff. You make it sound too hard-" she snickered at this, "Heh-heh, _hard_. That's funny."

Arian only shook her head helplessly.

"Anyhow, just wanted you to know we like seeing you two together; most anyway. Don't want you to split up is all."

Twisting her mouth slightly, the Inquisitor's gaze became confused. "We're not separating, Sera. At least I don't think that's the case. We just had a bit of a tiff is all."

"Oh, _good_ ," Sera exhaled, stuffing another cookie into her mouth. "It'd be a real shame to see you two ignoring each other. Even I admit you're friggin adorable."

Arian smiled. "Yes, I rather say we are, aren't we?"

"So you gonna go talk to him?"

The elder of the two shook her head. "I'll let him calm down for a bit. We'll see after that."

Sera shrugged in slight disagreement, wiping harshly at the array of cookie still left on her face. "Alright then, Inky. Meanwhile, let's finish these treats, yeah? I spent all afternoon slavin' over 'em." 


	3. Bull

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I haven't updated this in a while, I got distracted with my other projects ;)

"Commander! Come, grab a drink with me!" Bull called to the sandy-haired man when he entered the tavern. Looking up, Cullen gave the Qunari a curious look, before walking over to his corner of the building and taking a seat.

"You wanted to see me, Bull?" he asked, hands fidgeting a bit when he placed them on the table's surface before him.

"Yeah," Bull replied, "But first: Anastasia! Two mugs of the Ferelden Brew over here, for me and this handsome man!" he called out to the busty redhead standing a few tables from them.

"On it, darlin'," she said back, shifting her eyes to wink at Cullen in the process, then proceeding to walk to the serving counter. Cullen just sighed, turning his head toward the tavern's entrance.

"She's a catch, that one. Will let you take her from behind and keep her mouth shut the entire time," the Qunari said, his shoulders shaking with laughter. Cullen sputtered in reply, his cheeks flaming up.

"Sounds perfect for you," he coughed out. Bull laughed even harder as he slammed his fist on the table.

"How could I forget?" he said as he wiped tears of mirth from his eyes, "You're into the innocent type; blonde, blue-eyed, and slender."

Groaning, Cullen turned his face even more as it continued to flush.

"Heard you two have been having some issues," Bull stated, looking up when Anastasia approached them with their drinks on her tray.

"We had- ah...an argument... that's all."

Setting their drinks on the table, Anastasia suggestively said, "I can help you if you need some relief, darlin'."

Cullen shook his head with a scowl as he roughly grabbed his drink and took a swig. Anastasia stuck her nose up at him in response as she turned away, a "hmph" escaping her mouth.

"Yeah, you probably don't need her help anyway; you probably get a lot of action with Cupcake when you two have the time and privacy," Bull muttered, grabbing for his own drink.

The Commander paused, looking upward at the tavern's door again. Sighing, he replied, "I haven't- w-we haven't-" he rubbed at his neck nervously, "I haven't...taken her to bed yet."

Spitting out his drink, nearly spraying Cullen in the process, Bull exclaimed, "What!? You two have been together for months now!"

Cullen jerked back in disgust. "Forgive me if I don't want to mess up the one perfect thing in my life right now," he replied.

"Forgive _me_ , Commander, but I think that one little step is the thing you two _need_ right now."

"We weren't arguing about that, Bull!" Cullen hissed back. Apparently it was louder than intended, because the whole tavern was staring at the two after he said it.

"Commander," Bull said quietly, then stood, and gestured for him to follow. The tavern all watched with curious eyes as they left, then went back to their drinking like they hadn't been interrupted. Cullen followed Bull to the weaponry, where surprisingly the room was empty.

"So? What was your little tiff about, then?" Bull asked expectantly once he had closed the door. Groaning, Cullen proceeded to pace around the space of the room, simultaneously rubbing at his neck, before turning to respond to the Qunari.

"It's nothing against any of you, but I worry about her on a day-to-day basis. I offered her some of my more experienced soldiers to go out with her on expeditions but she refused, and proceeded to suggest that I found her weak and incapable. That's not the case at all, I swear it! I just...I just want to know she's safe, especially since she's the first person I've ever lo-" but he froze mid-word, looking down at his feet. Bull rose a brow at the man, then his lips quirked up into a knowing smirk.

"Ah...so that's what this is about," he chuckled.

The Commander grumbled to himself, turning to inspect the swords laid out on one of the benches in the room. Sighing, Bull came up beside him and slapped a hand on his pauldron, causing Cullen to waver slightly.

"You admit this little epiphany to her, yet?" he asked.

Shaking his head, Cullen scoffed, "Maker, no. I mean, I want to. But... we hardly see one another when she's here, and-and how do you go about just admitting something like that?"

"Easy," Bull said, "You grab her by the hips, stare deep into her eyes, and say, 'my darling Arian, I must admit that I've fallen impossibly and irrevocably in _love_ with you'," he told him in a mushy-sounding voice. Cullen groaned, his hand covering his face in embarrassment.

"This is serious, Bull!" he responded harshly. "I've never... she's everything I could have ever hoped for. I'm... I don't deserve her."

"And yet she chose you. I seem to recall when she talked with me about a similar issue back in Haven, believing herself unworthy of _you_."

Cullen looked at him in surprise. "She said that?"

Nodding, the Qunari said, "If you want to show her how much she means to you, you might wanna do it soon. This war isn't going to last forever, after all. When it is over, don't doubt that she may try to slip away."

Silence settled as Cullen contemplated this. "I don't want to lose her," he murmured quietly.

"Well, then, what are you waiting for?"

Taking a deep breath, Cullen nodded once before straightening his back and marching out of the weaponry, an unexpected air of confidence about him. Bull smiled, pleased with himself as he watched him quickly leave.

"Let's see Sera and Dorian top that," he smirked.

 


	4. Dorian

He was just getting into the meat of the new book he had picked up that afternoon when he heard a pair of differing footsteps make their way up the staircase. Dorian stood from his chair, and marked his place in the book before setting it down on his side table, then went to meet his cohorts, who looked all too pleased with themselves when he examined them.

"I take it went well?" he asked, crossing his arms expectantly.

"We got them to reconsider their actions," Bull answered for both he and Sera, who then added, " _Without_ havin' to beat em' up!"

"I hope you're right, if they call things off I'll be putting the blame on you two personally," Dorian retorted, pointing a finger at each respectively. "Now," he then said with a hint of flair, "I believe it is _my_ turn to provide expertise."

Both Sera and Bull looked at one another, brows raised and lips twisted. "You sure 'bout that, Pavus? Think they'll handle it 'emselves," the elven girl stated.

Seemingly ignoring them, Dorian started to walk away toward the staircase, turning back once to tell them, "No need to fear, dear friends! I'm just going to make sure that our dear Inquisitor and Commander no longer encounter anything that could possibly upset the balance of their delicate affair."

"Mage..." Bull warned, but Dorian continued onward anyway, waving his hand in dismissal.

" _No need to fear!_ " they heard him loudly repeat a minute later from the lower level.

 

* * *

 

As Dorian rounded the wall to a secluded part of the gardens, he was alerted to something that halted him mid-step. Quickly he planted himself back behind the corner, listening in on the Commander and Inquisitor who were there, speaking in hushed tones.

Seems he didn't have to go very far to find them after all.

"I just, I wish you understood-" spoke Cullen in a low timbre, followed by Arian who interrupted saying, " _Emma lath_ , I do understand." Dorian stealthily peaked around his spot to examine them further, and saw that the couple was wrapped up in one another, Arian's face nestled into Cullen's neck while his arms were firmly holding her to his chest.

"You forgive me, then?" the man asked, his voice both sincere and hopeful. The Inquisitor nodded, then pulled back to look him in the eyes, a sweet disposition on her face.

"Of course, silly Commander. I just wish you wouldn't worry so much," she chided him with a reassuring smile. He smiled back, but quickly it morphed into a troubled frown as he looked off to the side. "Cullen?" Arian then questioned, obviously concerned.

Cullen took in a shaky breath. "There's...something else I wish to discuss with you, but not here," he told her after a moment. "Come to my office, tonight. I have a meeting with some of my officers but once it's over I will be free to speak for as long as necessary."

"Is something wrong?"

"No," he answered quickly, then, "Yes. Ah, i-it'd be easier to explain when there aren't people surrounding us. Where we can lock the door if necessary."

Arian giggled, "That won't stop people from eavesdropping." She abruptly paused after that, and spoke knowingly as her eyes swiveled to the left, "Right, _Dorian?_ "

Immediately the altus froze, hoping he could possibly hatch an escape route before the woman's wrath came down on him, but ultimately ended up letting out a defeated sigh as he stepped away from his spot behind the wall.

"Ah, Inquisitor, Commander! Didn't expect to find you back here, away from prying eyes," he uttered convincingly.

The couple exchanged an irritated glance. "Except yours, of course," Cullen then replied, obviously annoyed at the interruption.

Dorian nodded, his eyes wandering around the area, hoping to find something interesting to stare at but to no avail. "Right," he said, and turned to head back the way he had come, "I'll just...be heading out, then."

"Wait, Dorian," Arian spoke, releasing herself from Cullen's grasp. "I'd like to accompany you, I do believe we have something to discuss."

Dorian audibly swallowed. "Of course, Your Worship," he told her, in a manner more confident than he felt.

"Arian," came Cullen's voice as they started to walk away, and she glanced back at him over her shoulder, nodding once.

"Your office, tonight. I got it," she said with a warm smile. Dorian wanted to gag at the adorably _stupid_ expression the Commander responded with.

 

* * *

 

"You really thought we needed _counseling?_ " Arian whined in exasperation when the two had reached Dorian's reading spot. Unable to think of anything witty to respond with, Dorian just shrugged with a coy grin. "Dorian," she groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose, "we're going to fight sometimes, what made you think we needed a talking to for one little argument?"

After a moment of thought, Dorian let out a deep sigh. "I apologize, Cupcake. Seeing something so innocent possibly tarnished...I suppose my inner romantic took over," he admitted.

Arian stared at him for a while, reading his eyes, before she sighed deeply herself and a tiny smile turned up on her lips. "Dorian," she said softly, coming up to him to place a hand on his cheek. "You're a wonderful friend. But please don't worry about me and Cullen; we'll be fine, I promise."

He smiled back at her-teeth and all, as his hand came up to cover hers. "Alright, Cupcake," he laughed, "If you're that confident in one another, I'll stop being a ninny."

"Good. You have other things to worry about, after all. Such as figuring out how to be Tevinter's pariah when you head back there," she teased. Dorian, agreeable as ever to the idea, let out a single "harrumph" and stuck his chin in the air.

"You're right, of course. So much more important," he confirmed, twirling his mustache. Arian shook her head, and just smiled hopelessly in response.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is the end of THIS little ficlet, but I will be posting the... *ahem* "first night" between Cullen and Arian in a few days, which directly follows this, (and will be M!) so be on the lookout for that if you're interested!
> 
> Thanks for reading!
> 
> Question? Concern? My tumblr: [here](http://www.martini-september.tumblr.com)


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